The Isle of Capri is a small Island close to the city of Naples. This Island has been popular since the time of the Romans. Emperor Augustus basically developed Capri, and turned it into his private paradise. Capri is the main town on the island and showcases most of the sights, restaurants, shopping, and activities. Anacapri, the other town on the island, showcases the stunning views from Mount Solaro. The island features colorful houses, small boats to yachts, stunning views, amazing food, and the bluest sea you have ever laid your eyes on. If you are planning on visiting Italy in 2017, add this stunning island to your list!
How to get there:
There are two ways (that I know of) to get to the island. Ferry transportation from Naples or Sorrento. Sorrento is a bit closer to the Isle of Capri, so if you get sea sick or have restricted time than this route may be best for you. I will give you a back story on what we did. We were in Rome for a week and decided to do a tour with Viator to Sorrento, Pompeii, and the Isle of Capri. We drove to Naples first and had lunch with the rest of the tour group. After lunch we boarded the bus and made our way to Pompeii where we had a tour of the city. After our tour, we boarded the bus again and drove to our hotel in Sorrento. We had the option of staying in Sorrento one to two nights. We stayed one night in Sorrento, and the next day took the ferry to Capri. We spent all day in Capri, and at the end of the day took the ferry back to Naples to make our journey back to Rome.
What to do:
I feel as if I could have spent several days in the Isle of Capri. The Island completely captures your soul as soon as you step off of the ferry. When I do return one day, I plan on spending more time enjoying this wonderful place. If you are on a time crunch like we were than do not fret, you can see everything in 12 hours!
When you get off of the ferry you are given the option to do a boat tour around the island and a tour of the Blue Grotto (blue cave). The Blue Grotto was closed on the day that we were in Capri due to the weather. Our tour guide stated that the Grotto is closed more often than expected because the weather and sea conditions have to be perfect to safely enter and exit the cave. You can only imagine my disappointment. I travelled to the other side of the world and the cave was closed! But I still made the most of the day because after all I was in the famous Isle of Capri. So instead we chose the tour around the island. Our tour guide did a very good job explaining certain aspects of the Island. The views even from the boat were incredible. I highly recommend doing a boat tour once you arrive.
The next sight on the island is the Faraglioni. Faraglioni are rock formations in the ocean eroded over time by waves. These rock formations were absolutely breath taking and a very well known symbol of Capri. The legend states that when you go through the rock formation you must kiss your sweetheart for many years of good luck and love. I had my sweetheart right beside me so naturally I went in for a smooch! I am not sure whether or not this legend is true but it was such an amazing moment to share with the one you love.
After sailing around the Faraglioni we made our way back to the Marina Grande. The beautiful colorful houses perched on top of the hill in Capri with the small boats lining the Marina made for a stunning view.
Once we got off of the boat we decided to take the bus up to the heart of Capri. There is one main street that travels through Capri. This main street features many coffee shops, restaurants, and shops (including Gucci, Dolce and Cabana, etc). We did some walking on this street and stumbled upon a few beautiful vantage points of the island. Make sure to visit the Gardens of Augustus, Via Krupp, and the Certosa di San Giacomo Monastery. After our walking adventure was over we hopped on a bus and headed to Anacapri.
The winding and narrow road to Anacapri was both beautiful and terrifying at the same time. The entire trip is spent by driving along side a cliff with the most stunning view of Capri in my opinion. On arrival to Anacapri, we immediately made our way to the Cable car ride up Mount Solaro. The open cable car only seats one person and was a little terrifying. The cable car takes you to the highest point of Mount Solaro on Anacapri. The ride up was stunning with gorgeous views of Anacapri, but than we noticed that we were rising up to the clouds. It was an interesting experience, but also terrifying for individuals like myself who are afraid of heights. The top of Mount Solaro took all of my fears away. The view was incredible and gave us a perspective of how high up we really were. You could see the Faraglioni from the top standing out from the beautiful blue Mediterranean sea.
After the cable car ride it was time for lunch in Anacapri. There is a restaurant right by the cable cars called Aumm Aumm Ristorante Pizzeria. It is a small and quaint little restaurant, and was full of people waiting to be seated. We knew than that the food had to be spectacular. Well our assumption did not fail us, It was the best pizza I have ever eaten in my life. The wine and pizza were just what we needed after a long day.
Even though it was a short day, we were able to explore all of the important parts of the Island. This is one of my favorite memories spent in Italy. Each minute spent on the Isle of Capri felt like something out of a fairy tale. Have your camera ready and charged because you will not want to miss a moment of the beauty that the Isle of Capri has to offer.
Andrea's Travels 